Cashless payments such as by credit cards and debit cards are growing at a rapid pace. Mobile phones are also widely used. These two trends converge with mobile payments.
Mobile payments allow the user to pay for a purchase using a mobile device such as a smartphone. Many different mobile payment schemes have been proposed, and several are being tested. Success of these schemes has been limited for various reasons.
One problem with some mobile payment schemes is that they require a fairly sophisticated smartphone, such as an Android phone using Google software, or an iPhone using Apple software. Some mobile payment systems may support one brand of smartphones but not other brands. Since the smartphone market is currently split, mobile payment systems that support only Android or only Apple phones eliminate half or more of the potential cell-phone users.
The smartphone market is still fluid as new entrants such as Windows smartphones appear and have the potential, although perhaps not the likelihood, of taking away a major share of the market. WiFi-only devices that run Skype or similar calling programs may bypass traditional cellular networks yet still be used as mobile phones.
While smartphones have received a great deal of attention, many users still have older cell phones that do not run Android or Apple software. The high cost of smartphones limits their acceptance in cost-sensitive foreign markets and among cost-sensitive customers.
The fragmented mobile phone market limits the success of mobile payment systems that function with only a particular kind of smartphone, or that do not work with older legacy cell phones. The inventors believe that the widespread acceptance of a mobile payment system depends on it being able to operate with all kinds of mobile phones, including smart phones of all types, and legacy cell phones.
What is desired is a mobile payment system that operates with all kinds of mobile phones. A mobile payment system that enables a merchant's Point-Of-Sale (POS) system to accept a payment that is assisted by a user's mobile phone is desirable, regardless of the kind of mobile phone or mobile device. Enhanced verification of the user's identity is desirable using such a mobile payment system.